The Other Guy
by xKonstantinex
Summary: This is a story about the guy that you thought you would never want.The arrogant, cocky git who walked around the halls like he owned them. I can't stop thinking about him. I’m Lily Evans. And for some reason, I can not get James Potter out of my mind.
1. Introduction

The Other Guy.

Brought to you by: prissKilla.

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Every girl has _that_ fairy tale: we dream that one day, out of the blue, prince charming will just stroll into our lives. He'll look at you, you'll coyly glance back at him and there would just be that undeniable connection…that burning, butterflies in your stomach, breath caught in your throat feeling that envelopes you in dizziness; the kind that makes your mind go numb and kicks your heart rate up to somewhere in the ballpark of 500 beats per minute. You know. That moment.

It doesn't matter if you pictured him catching you mid fall, or saving your dog/cat/ferret/hedgehog from sure death, or if you dreamed of him worshipping you from afar while you checked for food in your teeth with your spoon. We, as girls, all have some variation of that dream.

He would be the perfect guy; a complete gentleman, a total hit with the parents. Smart, funny, sweet, and he would know exactly what to say and just what to do to make you smile. He would never disappoint you, surprised you with gifts that increased in cuteness and expensiveness. He hugged you from behind, twirled you into his arms and made it know to the world that you were his. On weekends, he volunteered at soup and shadowed professors doing research in new spells and enchantments against the dark arts; he was such an intellectual. He never caused trouble, was adored by the staff, and seemed to have a knack for everything from art, to literature, to potions and especially defense against the dark arts.

You know. That guy.

Unfortunately (for me, not you), this story is not about _that_ guy.

Oh no.

This is about that _other_ guy.

The one who goes around like he owns the entire school, giant squid and all. The annoying git who doesn't even have to study that hard for his classes, but still manages to pull perfect marks and rank either first or second in every class. He's the arse that dangled the Christmas tree upside down and made all the female Gryffindor seventh years' underwear disappear on the first day of spring (which would have meant shorter skirts without those horrible itchy tights underneath).

The one who goes out with his friends way too often, has won awards for drinking more than twice his weight in Firewhiskey, and who has been known to dabble in Herbology…and not because he was interested in bubotuber pods or any kind of magical plant for that matter.

This is a story about the guy that you thought you would never want. The guy you thought you could never have.

Until somewhere along the way, you ended up wanting him more than anything in the world. Even more than you thought you wanted Mr. Prince Charming..

And all because that guy, the untouchable bad boy, fell for you first and actually managed to somehow win you over.

I'm Lily Evans. And for some reason, I can not get James Potter out of my mind.

It could be because he's a complete jackass and infuriates me more than the sound of Styrofoam squeaking.

It could be because he's so smart and so quick with facts yet such a slacker at the same time that I feel incompetent when I have to study for hours, days, weeks at a time just to get the same grades he gets.

It could be because he has no regard for authority and will do what he wants when he wants whether that's hurtling himself through the air propelled by a stick of wood when it's raining out, or camp out by the lake at night.

It could be because when he looks at me, I feel special.

It could be because I'm obviously in love with him.

It could be because sometimes I feel like the only reason why I'm even doing this is because he's everything I can't have or be, and it hypnotizes me into this false calm and kicks logic right out the door. Damn the rebel inside of me.

Hm. If only I knew which one of those reasons was the real reason why.

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To be completely honest, I have no idea if I'm going to finish this or not. But I do know that I have almost the entire story planned out…and that a little encouragement might be all it takes for to take over my life once more LoL.

Hope you liked it ;D


	2. In a Nutshell

The Other Guy  
Authored by: prisskilla

Chapter 2: In a Nutshell  
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Since I was young, I have always been ambitious. Growing up, I always dreamed of something more; something away from Little Whinging where ordinary people raise ordinary families. I dreamed of one day becoming a world renowned doctor; using my arsenal of skills to save lives, repair the broken. Not a pediatrician mind you, but a surgeon- I craved the power, the ability to affect change and in one sitting, remodel the structures that provided life. I still remember the day I got my Hogwarts letter- and the utter relief that washed over me when I realized that something bigger was out there. ..and I was a part of it. I don't think of myself as a complacent or arrogant person, but then again that's because I don't believe that it's wrong for you to believe in yourself, or want to push yourself beyond your dreams. I think to commit to that gives you a confidence that scares some people, but really, they could do it if only they weren't so afraid.

A year ago, if you had asked me what I thought about love, I would have given you a nice long shpiel about how there was no time in my life for boys. I was in my sixth year, taking the first half of several of the hardest N.E.W.T. classes already, prefect again, president of the Charms club and tutoring third years in Potions. There was no time, and the time that I did have I enjoyed sneaking around the castle with my closest friends, Alice Jensen, Theresa Walker and Nicole Lee, taking advantage of the prefect bathrooms and having a good time with butterbeer, or when there were no exams, Firewhiskey. What? Everyone has to loosen up sometime right? What a waste it would be if I had spent 7 years in one of the most enchanted places in the world without exploring…just a little bit.

Anyways, you can see that between friends and academia, there was just no time, and for a while, most of my friends were in the same boat as I. What with Theresa and Nicole working on their Healer prerequisites, and Alice aiming for the Auror academy with me, we were all pretty much content with our busy lives. Of course, time flies…and before I knew it, they had all started to pair up, and my friends, though they were still around, had some how managed to fit certain boys into their timetables. And so it was one drunken night after a particularly nasty break up of Theresa's that we were all huddled together in one of the prefect's bathrooms with a half eaten box of Honeydukes assorted chocolates at our feet and two bottles of Firewhiskey, ready for a game of "Have you Ever". Our versions of "Have you Ever" tended to conclude by everyone trying to out the others; really, we all knew each other so well, that it was a matter of data recollection: bonus points if you brought up a particularly disturbing event. For example, the honest confession "I have never kissed a stranger." led to Alice's deep reddening, and her taking a shot for that one Hogsmeade trip where she snogged an ancient warlock who she thought to be Frank Longbottom. She didn't account for the fact that Madam Malkin's might have manufactured and sold more than one hunter green cloak that season.

Apparently, when your drunken friends realize that you haven't drunk in about 10 rounds, all of which were relationship related, they come to realize the full effect of your situation. Anyways, it was while Nicole was puking in the mickey, that she told me it was her deepest wish to know what the hell I was waiting for. Drunk as I was, I of course rambled off my elementary school fairy tale vision of my "perfect" soulmate.

A boy who I'd known for years, someone I clicked with on every level, who understood me better than even my best friends. Someone who would take my hand by surprise and walk slowly around the grounds with me, shyly brush my hair back and wait for me to pull in for a sweet kiss.

Funny how it turned out. How instead, it was someone who ran after me and tackled me into the Black Lake, then kissed me so hard that I wondered if it was the cold water around me or the complete blackout of my brain that was keeping me from breathing.

It's amazing how much people can change in just one year.

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Sorry for the delay, but expect more updates soon. Thanks for the reviews everyone; just like the next person, you know I'd love some more :D Grazi!


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